Black Geyser - Early Access in March

Myrthos

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As far as the schedule of Black Geyser is concerned, there are two updates. One is for the late backer option that ends on the 26th of December and the second is about the game being available in Early Access on the 24th of March.

And then there is also an update about the player stronghold.

For this update we wanted to show you something we've been working on. Our Stronghold system will allow players to have a base of operations. Strongholds are specific to each party role and class, with each of the four roles (Warrior, Wizard, Priest and Outlaw) getting their own unique area, and aesthetic changes to the Stronghold based on the player's class within each role. While we're not ready to show off the final in-game map yet for the Strongholds, we wanted to give players a sneak-peek into how our concept artist has worked to design our Stronghold maps.

d12721aea3b5e7ba0abe0ad45eb75690_original.jpg
The image above depicts Locus, the Wizard stronghold. Clever players will find a way to summon a portal to Locus, deep in the woods south of Isilbright. Each area within Locus contains a puzzle, allowing you to further access the remaining areas (those walkways don't start out as straightforward as they look here!). Once the puzzles are completed, Wizards will be able to utilize each of the buildings for a variety of purposes, and recruitable NPCs who are not currently in the party will make themselves at home so that it's easier for players to enlist their services later without having to travel all over the world map.

As mentioned earlier, specific classes will see aesthetic changes to portions of their role's Stronghold. Wintermages will find the Sanctum appropriate to their frosty pursuits after claiming Locus as their own.

Warriors and Priests will have more combat-oriented challenges to unlocking their Strongholds, while Outlaws will find themselves meddling in intrigue that affects the whole nation! Additionally, players who are not of the correct role for a given Stronghold will still be able to play through the quest related to each, so never fear about missing any content! As the game continues to develop, we will be showing you more information about the Strongholds you can call home.
More information.
 
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Nice of them to finally drop and say something :D

I thought the project became vaporware.
 
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Count me as another who's happy they finally updated. Still as said already by many backers would it kill them to post more update's about it's development. Looks more and more like a bunch of amateurs.
 
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Glad to see an update although why March 2020? They will be competing with Bannerlords EA :p

Personally, not interested in playing EA, I will wait for a full release.
 
Personally, not interested in playing EA, I will wait for a full release.
I'm happy that there are enough fools or bored gamers who play EA and thus test for the rest at no charge.
 
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I'm happy that there are enough fools or bored gamers who play EA and thus test for the rest at no charge.

EA is nothing like testing these days. Due to crowdfunding influence, it has been turned into the main experience during which most playing hours happen.
 
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EA is nothing like testing these days. Due to crowdfunding influence, it has been turned into the main experience during which most playing hours happen.
Most playing hours happening in EA doesn't mean the games' versions don't have the same low quality of beta versions and thus are actually tested by EA gamers for the gamers playing later.
 
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Low quality is very relative. If that was the case, players who have spent so many hours on the lower quality versions would not drop from playing the final superior version.

Adding content is one way to keep players interested. That is what expansions, DLCs were for.

Stated many times already, the crowdfunded movement demolished beta testing or whatever.

EA is not beta testing. Usually, it has grown common for each version of an EA product to be beta tested (crowdfunded were forced to use different words)

Version 0.5 is beta tested as 0.5tobebetatested. Once released as 0.5, it is a version of the product.
Same goes for 0.6 that adds more content.

EA is the flow of constant addition of content. Some of it will make it to the final version, other wont.

Players drop out fast from playing the final version because the constant injection of new content that got them stuck during EA is no longer there.
 
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EA is nothing like testing these days. Due to crowdfunding influence, it has been turned into the main experience during which most playing hours happen.

Do you have any actual facts backing up that claim? I've never seen anyone claim that the most playing hours occur during early access before. Not that I have seen anyone stating the opposite either though. Some games are stuck in some kind of EA limbo forever, and then I reckon the point is valid, but personally I very seldom put more than at most a couple of hours into a game in EA. Then I wait for the 1.0 release at least and most times longer still.

I'm not saying I'm the average gamer, but at least on this site waiting for the 1.0 release seems to be the norm.
 
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In two hours, nothing can be achieved.

It is geometric. A player spending 20 hours on various EA versions each must put a serious effort to match it at release.

20 hours spent on five different versions that's 100 hours to spend on the final version to match.

And that is pretty low in terms of hours spent on EA versions.

Players with 1500, 2000, 3000 hours spent on a product achieve the count because of time spent on EA versions. It stacks up.

Clearly, players might not play EA versions, in which case they have no issue topping the amount of hours spent on EA versions.

For those players who play EA versions, most time is spent on playing EA versions.

While players who play mostly the final version get 50, 100 hours, players who play EA versions get 200 400 hours for the same price (money per hour thing)

EA means having the interest renewed by constant inflow of new content. It has nothing to do with beta testing.
 
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These aren't facts, but assumptions.
 
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Better to check what an assumption is and what a fact is.

Due to the american system, the group is all now and therefore a confusion.

It was never written that most players play products during EA. Which is the mattering question to determine if you belong to the group that forces things onto groups and the rest. This is the obsession, this is the vital issue.

Never written that.

It was written that EA versions are not to be depicted as beta testing stuff.

This is a developpment process providing stable versions one after the other, constantly renewed with an inflow of content.

Players who participate in the EA thing gets the most of the product. So much it wont be rare that they spend more time on EA versions than final version.

Now for players who suddenly feel insecured by this statement as they interpretated it as meaning that EA players are taking up the power, the servants will serve them first, that is another issue.
 
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Alright, that actually makes more sense. There's a big difference between saying "EA has been turned into the main experience during which most playing hours happen" and saying "people who play a lot of EA will often put many more hours into EA than into the final game".

Regarding if it's beta testing or not, I strongly disagree with the fact that EA isn't testing. The games I have taken for a spin in EA (DOS for example) certainly didn't at all feel like anything else than a beta, and as such I quickly decided not to put more hours in since I didn't want to spoil the final experience.
 
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I played Blackguards EA and the experience was flawless. Ended up playing it again on release and couldn't tell a difference. So in some instances at least EA is viable.

I looked in to pledging as a late backer. Wanted to get a boxed version and EA. Unfortunately they have boxed version for 71 and EA for 99 but you can't get both without going up to premium content edition for 170. Not sure I want to go that high.
 
Alright, that actually makes more sense. There's a big difference between saying "EA has been turned into the main experience during which most playing hours happen"

This is maintained. EA has been turned into the main experience, providing stable ( even polished) versions that will keep being refreshed with an inflow of new content.

Players who want the most of the experience join at EA, will get their interest sustained by various releases and in all likelihood will spend more hours on EA versions than the final version.
and saying "people who play a lot of EA will often put many more hours into EA than into the final game".
It is written as a simple statement.

Nothing from platining a game or not. Completing a game at 100 pc takes x hours, finishing it at 30pc takes less hours.

Platinum experience for EA products, playing EA versions plus final version.
Final version only: 30 pc of the full experience.
Regarding if it's beta testing or not, I strongly disagree with the fact that EA isn't testing. The games I have taken for a spin in EA (DOS for example) certainly didn't at all feel like anything else than a beta,

EA versions are not betas. They have their betas.

Wildermyth for example is already polished. It has less content than the final version. Ulterior versions might have content than the final version wont have.

Ulterior versions will keep adding content. Players spend 10 hours on this version, players might spend 15 hours on next versions, each time their interest renewed by additional content.

Adding content is one way to keep players interested.

Players spend time on a main product, their interest falter, they demand an expansion to add content and revigorate their interest.

EA is that. Wildermyth for example will receive multiple expansions that renew the interest each time.
 
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So, just out of curiosity - anyone in Watch backed this enough to get the demo?
 
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